Abilify (apiprazole) is a total scam. The new drug in that family is called Rexulti (Brexpiprazole). It's probably a total scam too.

Part of the problem is that each person has unique brain chemistry, so different drugs affect different people in different ways,

I really do believe in better living through chemistry. I really, really do. But we're living in an era where beta testing is introducing a drug into the populace and doing cost/benefit analyses after the fact. The fact that the R&D arms can focus on treatment instead of cures insures a steady enough revenue stream to survive the inevitable lawsuits caused by beta testing new drugs on the populace at large. And the top folks at the FDA are certainly being compensated somehow, or we would never have gotten here.

Bad electrical storm here, so i'll have to hop off my soapbox a LOT earlier than i'd planned. See you all soon.

Liz, i'm glad you've found something that works, and i'm proud of you for standing up to the pushers who would love to make you think that they have your child's best interests at heart.

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Maturin

I've always appreciated your restraint, Mo

Quote:

Originally Posted by vonnegut

Mo, I you

Spoiler: notes

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And for this post, it's not the pharmaceutical industry. Instead, it's thee single best growth industry in North America: the US prison system.

At this moment there are more people incarcerated in the United States than have ever been incarcerated in the rest of world history combined. There are more people in prison in the US today than there were in Germany during the entire reign of the Third Reich... shit, every Reich, all combined, and add in every other prison EVER. Many people enter the prison system because of mental heath problems and/or drug abuse. They emerge as taboo people, the lowest caste, and instead of preparing them to re-enter society as productive members, they are prepared for recidivism.

But it's the big industry in the US. Breaking it down would be an unqualified economic disaster. The realities of the lives destroyed, both the prisoners and their keepers, is lost in hyperbolic rhetoric that just drives the cycle harder.

We have become the police state. Legalization is no longer even a viable answer, think of all the jobs that would be lost, the rise in REAL crime that would result from that economic devastation.

People like to talk about finding better answers for "the drug problem" but the reality is that the populace doesn't want a better answer, and once someone is a felon, they're disenfranchised - literally - they don't get to vote anymore.

There are a LOT of people who suffer from chronic pain issues in New York State (and i'm sure elsewhere, but i'm going to talk about my recent experiences in NYS). The NYS legislature, in response to growing numbers of deaths from overdoses on prescription pain medications, has severely toughened guidelines on pain management, they're even throwing doctors in prison for serious hard time. It's one thing to go after a guy who's knowingly pill-milling, but it's another to scare the crap out of every doctor in the state who might write a low-dose opioid prescription. My wife has trouble during the rainy seasons with her ankles, which were badly broken in her twenties and never healed properly. Up until this year, she's never had a problem getting a low-dose narcotic to help, and she's always strictly followed the doctors' instructions and they've checked more than a few times over the years. Last month, we went in, and her primary tells her that no opioid pain medication is ever allowed for chronic pain in NYS anymore. This means my wife will be less mobile this spring, probably gain weight, and therefore do more damage to her ankles. "Sorry, that's the law now."

Cuomo and the legislature keep tightening up pain meds, they classified Tramadol as a controlled substance a few years ago too. They're getting the result they want in terms of decreased deaths due to overdoses on prescription pain meds, but they can't figure out why heroin demand (and subsequent deaths) are increasing at an even higher rate. Gee, *scratches chin* makes no sense. Not that Mrs. Mo is going to get heroin for her ankles, she'll just suffer and have a shittier quality of life (not to mention shorter).

But here's the thing: it's win-win for the politicians. They look like they're doing something about prescription pain meds, and they get to be tough on crime which means more prisons built, more jobs building and staffing those prisons, a lower unemployment rate because prisoners aren't considered unemployed, AND once (if ever) they're released, they can't even vote against you! Win-win? It's win-win-win-win-win! Unless of course you get hurt and don't have great insurance. In that case, get used to the idea that rape is somehow funny.

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maturin

I've always appreciated your restraint, Mo

Quote:

Originally Posted by vonnegut

Mo, I you

Spoiler: notes

gift cards make great gifts both for shoppers who are lazy and/or have a lot of gifts to buy. They're also a shrewd choice if there are individuals in your life for whom it is difficult to shop. When bought through the astore, they also help support this site, which isn't self-sufficient and doesn't hold fund-raisers or any of that other crap.

Twenty years from now, your daughter will reallly appreciate what you did for her, Liz! I love that you resisted their med-pushing. They're literally paid to do it - more doctors than not in the US receive kickbacks and incentives from certain drug makers, to ensure they choose their med as the go-to when doling stuff out. It's gross. Abilify sounds like it should be taken off the market, and probably should be. I'd be weary even of the Lexapro, but obviously you see it improving her condition so maybe it isn't all bad. Maybe look into the method of action for lexapro, see what brain chemistry it is altering and if there are any natural herbal antagonists that may do much of the same.

I'll never forget once, when I was about 15 and at the dentist for a check up. The guy said I had FOUR or FIVE cavities and it was imperative we went back soon to get them fixed. (I didn't want it done,had never had a cavity in my life)

Fast forward to I am almost 32 and have never had a cavity or any issue with the teeth that dentist wanted to fill. Scary, huh?

Lexapro is an SSRI (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor), the most common family of antidepressants. Other brand name SSRIs are Prozac, Zoloft, and Paxil (there are variants, but those are the primary SSRIs).

To the best of my understanding, SSRIs work by slowing the brain's intake of serotonin after an event which caused a serotonin spike. This slowing helps prevent a "crash" sensation, when the natural serotonin has been all absorbed. This prevention of crashing helps prevent depression.

SSRIs such as Prozac were the first truly effective antidepressant pharaceuticals available in the US. They can have nasty side effects, though - like I said, different drugs affect different people in different ways.

A newer class of antidepressants is SSNRIs, which are Selective Serotonin and Norepinephrine Reuptake inhibitors. Serotonin is related to psychotropic euphoria in large doses, and correlates directly to mood regulation. Norepinephrine is related more to energy levels,

The newest (that I yet know of) class of antidepressants are SSDRIs, or Selective Serotonin and Dopamine Reuptake Inhibitors. Dopamine, if you didn't know, is THEE pleasure chemical for the brain, so the possibilities for these drugs go WAY beyond treating depressions.

Personally, I really do think yung is right, and there's a good chance that all this pharmacology will be utterly moot soon enough.

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maturin

I've always appreciated your restraint, Mo

Quote:

Originally Posted by vonnegut

Mo, I you

Spoiler: notes

gift cards make great gifts both for shoppers who are lazy and/or have a lot of gifts to buy. They're also a shrewd choice if there are individuals in your life for whom it is difficult to shop. When bought through the astore, they also help support this site, which isn't self-sufficient and doesn't hold fund-raisers or any of that other crap.

I don't see any posts from yung? Is he a psilocybin fan? Pretty sure if they studied msgicnkushrooks wel enough and seriously enough, they'd find the cure for almost every mental ailment of the mind. Ever seen how hyper-connected the connections get on patients who take small doses?

Also, interesting to me you say coffee helps your kids, Liz. Back in my most depressive days (and I believe I've always had ADHD), I was on a regimen of 5-HTP and coffee. I didn't know about time-released caffeine, I'll have to check that out! But coffee really does seem to help me focus, or lift my mood. I know that's known of coffee, but I think it's more than that for me than what most people perceive when they drink it.

Anyway, also sounds silly but I've also found taking ibuprofen daily also helps with the ADHD brain fog impairment. I'm a big believer in most mental issues stemming from chronic inflammation, and ibuprofen works on a few different channels in the brain than other NSAIDS. I only discovered this one day after noticing by mistake how much better and clearer my mind had felt after taking ibuprofen for something entirely unrelated. I googled, and across many forums and places online others report the same differences.

Mattie, I was referring to yung's thread that's linked in my sig. I make it a general rule not to discuss my friends' drug habits or lack thereof without their specific permission.

I think he gave me permission but i'm just not sure and not willing to take the risk of being wrong, even though in this specific circumstance i'm pretty sure he'd want me to... it's not as complicated as i'm making it, so i'll say this instead: obviously, *I* still smoke marijuana/

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maturin

I've always appreciated your restraint, Mo

Quote:

Originally Posted by vonnegut

Mo, I you

Spoiler: notes

gift cards make great gifts both for shoppers who are lazy and/or have a lot of gifts to buy. They're also a shrewd choice if there are individuals in your life for whom it is difficult to shop. When bought through the astore, they also help support this site, which isn't self-sufficient and doesn't hold fund-raisers or any of that other crap.

Mo, I'll have to respectfully disagree that abilify is a scam. Like you said, every persons body is different and will react differently to the multitudes of medications out there.

My daughter has been in counseling for nearly four years. Before starting she had a neuropsych eval done and the psychologist came up with a bizarre diagnosis of Opposition Defiant Disorder which did not suit her at all. We saw a doctor who suggested Risperdal (don't even get me started on behavior meds!) I knew enough about that med to know it wasn't an option for us. So we sought out a counselor and for the first three years I resisted medications, she's been with the same counselor the whole time and she was very respectful of my desire not to medicate. She also respected my desire to celebrate my daughters individuality. My interest was not in turning her into a "normal" cookie cutter child. I just wanted her to learn the coping skills she needed because her perception of her social status was so far removed from reality that it was genuinely painful to watch. Her perfectionism was also getting in the way of her social interactions. No first grader should feel the way she felt every day.

For a while counseling seemed to be helping, but something somewhere last year snapped in her and things took a turn for the worst. She started having suicidal thoughts and that was when the counselor (rightfully IMO started pressing for me to at least consider medications). We (my daughter and I) interviewed several doctors before we chose who we trusted to prescribe the medication and then we started the process. The initial diagnosis when we started medication was anxiety and depression.

The first attempted medication was Lexapro, but with her GI problems, it tore her stomach up. The next medication that we tried was Zoloft. We thought it was working at first because she genuinely seemed happier, but she got much too happy much too quickly. This was the med that triggered her to have a manic episode. While that sounds like a bad thing, it was actually a blessing. This is how we discovered that she has bipolar (or whatever they call it in children). The next med we tried was Lamictal which she unfortunately turned out to be severely allergic to. We finally settled on Abilify. She's been taking a very low dose since around Christmas and it's really amazing how well she's done on it. There's no indication that she feels drugged at all, in fact, she seems more alert and more focused. She's got the freedom to be herself without all of the bad thoughts invading her mind. For our family, Abilify has been a life saver.

Ok, cool, i sit corrected. You're the first person i know personally who has had a positive experience with it, but one case is all it takes to prove my statement wrong. Thanks for being respectful. This is a highly volatile issue and i tend to get more than a bit worked up.

__________________

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maturin

I've always appreciated your restraint, Mo

Quote:

Originally Posted by vonnegut

Mo, I you

Spoiler: notes

gift cards make great gifts both for shoppers who are lazy and/or have a lot of gifts to buy. They're also a shrewd choice if there are individuals in your life for whom it is difficult to shop. When bought through the astore, they also help support this site, which isn't self-sufficient and doesn't hold fund-raisers or any of that other crap.

I smoked pot for a long time but even that is all but gone now. I dont even smoke tobacco!

My mind reading thread is NOT due to mentalillness or drug induced pschosis.

that's been the point of ripping apart the technology.
Mo speaks about overcrowded prisons etc, well this technology is the governments latest weapon.
They are CAUSING mental illness! Pushing people to suicide instead of charging them.
Prob just to test their methods and technology.

It is TRULY occurring.

Anyone see what just occurred in new york?

This is Not a coincidence !
YET ANOTHER INNOCENT VICTIM IS DEAD
(in lue of what? Foregoing LAW ENFORCEMENT just to terrorize some piece of shit?)

"Driver in deadly Times Square crash told police he was hearing voices, expected to die"